Introduce yourself (part one)

Hi there!

My name is James and i am a support worker working with adults with learning difficulties and varying degrees of autism.

 Since i'm completely new to this field (I used to be a chef) i'm trying to find as much information as i can about ASD and that's how i came across this site.

I look forward to chatting to you all soon! :)

Hello to everyone!

Firstly I'd like to say thanks for this forum! I'm hoping for support and help as my journey begins.

My 4 year old son (next Wednesday to be precise!) is in the process of being diagnosed as having Aspergers. I knew there was something going on because of his amazing love of numbers! He knew my mobile at nearly 3 and could count to 1000. Count in 2,5,10,100's but socially he is detached.

He has had a positive report from the educational physcologist and we are waiting for the community peodatritians report. He told me at the meeting he was 90% sure. The next step is ASD clinic.

I am trying to educate myself as much as possible to be one step ahead of the game so to speak. This is all so new to me and though this last week I've had a little cry probably from all the relief of understanding that he is not just pushing the boundaries and it isn't just bad behavour. 

He has  2 older sisters, just turned 6 and nearly 9. 

He has terrrible trouble settling down of a night. Hitting the 2 hour mark but after having a play plan from his new nursery (3wks) and understanding that the lack of melatonin in his brain he can't shut off. This week he is down to 1 hour after playing with play dough before bed!!

  I am starting a sleep diary and wondered does anyone have any advice on herbal rememdies I could try him on. 

Thank you for reading my post! I look forward to replies!

hi there ime a newbie to and our twelve year old son was diognosed with asd he had avery lonley chil hood and its only now that we no why we love our son very dearly and woudnt change him for the world but until he was diognosed like you it felt like we were in quicksand we didnt no what to do or where to go but like you said with all these doors of opertunity now open for james we just want to get him help taking him out of school at ten years old because he couldnt cope with school life i just love the fact that we can be there for him all the time and more so teach him at his own pace its hard work and sometimes feel like i need a break but my husband and i work at it together i dont know what i would do without him.loud noises special foods no crowded places no young children aroung obssed with planes  do i go on no this isautism and now we know that this is why james is the way he is.with mehaving epilepsy i felt that maybe this was my fault ive been told there may be a link.our son is very hard work but is worth every minuet of it.

Hi Melissasmum,

Welcome to the Community. You may find you get more support if you start a discussion about the situation you are in.

I'd suggest the diagnosis area and you can start a discussion by following this link -

http://community.autism.org.uk/node/add/forum/1305

Whilst other people can offer their experiences in a discussion it might also be helpful to contact our helpline to see what advice and support they can offer.

You can see contact information and a description of the service here -

http://www.autism.org.uk/Our-services/Advice-and-information-services/Autism-Helpline.aspx

I really hope that's able to help and you find starting a discussion helpful here. :)

Hi

I'm not sure if I'm writing on the correct page but I have just found this site and I'm hoping to find some very much needed help. My daughter is 5 and has been seen by a speciality doctor(community paediactrics) every 4 months or so for about 18 months. The senco at my daughters school was asked to get involved - I'm still waiting.... no diagnosis as yet has been made and as time is going on things are getting worse - I dont know how much longer I can hold on, ive phoned the doctors twice this week begging for them to see her - they are going to get back to me...I have an appt in november to answer more questions to a questionnaire we started in May - I need help now and I dont know what to do, can anyone give me some advice - thank you x

hi my son is 12 and was diognosed only in jan this year it will be good to share comments with others and also to view theirs.we always knew there was somthink not write and was quite releived but also sad too when we found out. 

I am a mother of a 9 year old boy.  He doesn't have a formal diagnosis yet but as the waiting list for the service is 90 weeks it may take some time to get one.  My life revolves around my son so I can't regale you with my interests and hobbies.  Right now I feel like I'm sinking under the weight of emotion that's running through our home and I need help.

I'm not sure if this is the right place for me, if I've come to the wrong place any suggestions for sites that I might find usefull will be gratefully recieved.  I've read through the information given on Aspergers and I found it...  familiar.  I cried with relief when my Mum took my son to school this morning and now I have overpowering feelings of guilt, the tears are never far away and I find myself rushing off to the bathroom to have a quiet cry away from my son.

I think most of all I just need to know that there are people out there who have survived these years.  I need some hope to give me the energy to keep going, I may need some permission to let go and relax as well.  I found myself asking my Mum if I could please not go to the Harvest festival because I needed a break, my son is refusing to go to school, when he does go it's a huge relief and the October week holiday starts tomorrow.

There I go, gabbing away, I'm still working my way around the site and I'm not sure if a message pops up when a reply is sent so if I don't answer promptly you'll know I haven't checked.  I'm going to do something mindless now.  Thanks for any help you can give me, even if it's a web address pointing me in te right direction.

Hello zone tripper, Canadian Mom and san.

Welcome all of you to the community. Hopefully you'll find it useful and a friendly place to be. Looking forward to hearing from you in the discussions.

Sandra - mod

Hi everyone I am new to all of this, I have a nine yr old gorgeous little girl just been diagnosed with asd,  she has always had probs with her with anxiety, learning difficulties and felt very lonely dealing with all the probs even though i have a wonderful husband lovely son and a huge family for support but since seeing this group and realising we are not the only ones that have to live like this as been a huge help looking at peoples comments, Since diagnosis a lot more doors have been open to her to be able to get the right help which is a relief. However we now have to look at genetic testing soon and feel a little scared about this but i am sure we will get through this as we always do.

I have a friend who is involved in a sad case in BC Canada. All the details can be found at http://www.facebook.com/groups/justiceforayn/

The  short version is Derek's child, Ayn, who is autistic, was apprehended by the Ministry of Children and Family because they claim Derek was overwhelmed. But Derek was not overwhelmed. She was taken into government care in June and is still there. Does anyone know any great sites to find out about advocacy for autistic children and their families. It seems there is a growing trend to remove autistic kids from families and place them in foster care.

VickyW said:

Hi, I'm Vicky, I'm 34, unemployable, relentlessly negative, worn down by a life of having Asperger's and virtually no support (my ex-family are worse than I am, my dad didn't even tell me when he emigrated to Mexico), and I'm here because I've been banned from everywhere else due to my controversial views on a variety of subjects, which I intend to keep quiet about from now on (not easy!) and inability to know when to stop.

I used to post at a support forum for another thing that was different about me (bit of a sensitive subject), but some of the people there were quite cruel, and I eventually snapped.

I'm said to be a talented writer, but can't seem to apply myself, and people usually like me a lot, until I get depressed and go into self-destruct mode. I wasn't diagnosed with Asperger's until I was 22, before that, I thought I was just mad.

All I need is a bit of human contact. If I can chip in here every now and then (well, I made 10,664 posts on the site I mentioned before, over eight years or so, none of which were particularly helpful), I might be able to get through each crushingly lonely day.

Love and hugs,

Vicky.

P.S. This site is really hard to navigate compared to most, and usually there's a whole forum for introductions instead of one thread, but I suppose I'll get used to downsizing.

Dear Vicky,

I also tend to go off on one on various social networking sites and forums!  So you are not alone!  One thing that I have done is include a note in my signature about my having Asperger Syndrome and an Internet link to the NAS site. 

With regards to employment, have you ever considered doing some voluntary work?  Prior to employment, I did this and it boosted my confidence and abilities.  I now work for the NHS and still volunteer for the same charity; 15 years on. 

Hello all!

I am 34 years old (35 in a few weeks time) and was recently diagnosed as having Asperger Syndrome.  Coincidentally, I have an elderly uncle with severe (for want of a better phrase) autism.  In case anyone who knows me may be reading this forum, I'd prefer not to openly tell everyone my real name. 

One of the mental health professionals who has been looking after me suggested that I join this forum. 

What I hope to gain from it is understanding from other people with autism / asperger, share experiences, seek comfort that there are others with the same issues that I have been experiencing (depression, anxiety, memory problems, difficulty with social situations, etc), and maybe also discuss hobbies and interests. 

I have more interests than I care to mention!  But my main ones are voluntary work (I have been volunteering for a nature conservation charity for 15 years), tabletop roleplaying games, Doctor Who (both the original series and the newer series), the Doctor Who RPGS and the RPG based on Firefly/Serenity, re-enactment and LARPing, all things Goth but especially Carl McCoy / Fields of the Nephilim / Nefilim, collecting replica historical coins, collecting fake pound coins, collecting Doctor Who inspired LARP props, collecting Carl McCoy/Fields of the Nephilim/Nefilim records, video games, drawing (when I have the patience), etc.  I want to get back into photography. 

Ironically, for someone with mental health problems and Asperger Syndrome, I work at a NHS mental health hospital site as a clerical worker. 

Enough about me!

Welcome to the community epiphany and jesuslittlechild77.  We hope that you find it helpful and supportive being here.

Epiphany, you might find it useful to start a discussion within another section of our community where more members may see and respond to your concerns.

Alex - mod

hello,hello,hello is there anybody outthere?sorry for being sarcastic,my head is knackered and my wifes 2,shes NT.

Hello i'm new :) i usually backaway from people i dunno in real life as i get to nervous to talk to them >.< I was diagnosed with AS in 2009. I like to have be creative film and write stories. I believe in God and I like rainbows and cats :) 

Hi all,gary here.Not been diagnosed yet,but i know i have AS.Ive known im a bit different since my teens but never known why.Im married and my wife has residency order for her grandson.As far as we are concerned were mum and dad 2 him,he has FAS BECAUSE OF ALCOHOL,but a social worker almost off the record said his bio dad has AS.Any info would be lovely.Also live long and prosper.Any1 for a mind meld lol.

Hello steve1975 and dolly daydream,

Welcome to the community. We look forward to hearing from you. Please feel free to start up a discussion in one of the relevant areas if you'd like to chat about something in particular.  

There's lots of informatiom here on the website. I thought you might find this of interest Steve:

http://www.autism.org.uk/living-with-autism/understanding-behaviour/behaviour-guidelines.aspx

It probably rings some bells with the adaptations you've already made. If we can help in any way please just ask, perhaps if you have particular concerns about school you might want to start a discussion in the "Education matters" section:

http://community.autism.org.uk/node/add/forum/1406

More interested users should be able to find it here and join in.

Sandra - mod

Hi everyone! I'm a 34 year old woman! I was diagnosed with autism last week. I have had years of knowing I was different and severe struggles with socialising, education, etc. It feels like a relief, now that I have been diagnosed.  I am going to focus on my abilites more now.